Doubt and Trust
June 17th
Watchtower
Morgan
"I'm looking for my own apartment." Morgan fiddled a bit with a pen she had picked up off the table.
Dinah studied her, as usual. "You're thinking of moving out?"
Morgan shrugged. "Yeah. I need – my mom and I both need – for me to go."
"What makes you think that?"
Morgan's first instinct was to argue that she didn't need to defend her decision. But by now, she understood that Dinah wasn't challenging her, but rather giving her the opportunity to voice her thoughts.
"I don't know.. it's like my mom still sees me as a kid, because I still live at home. She hasn't realized that I'm an adult now – which I know I'm still very young!" she quickly added, not wanting to sound like she was going 'waaah, take me seriously!'.
She went on, "I know I'm still a very young adult, but I am technically an adult. And I don't like being treated like a child. I know that for a while, it helped me – it made me feel safe, and it was easy not to challenge it, because she made decisions for me at a time where I wasn't ready to make them for myself. But I don't want that anymore. I need to get out and live on my own. Besides," she put the pen back down and started playing with her hair, trying to squash down the guilt she was feeling. She knew it was unavoidable, as that guilt was the exact thing she was meant to be talking about. "It kills me to see how worried my mom is every time I leave. Whenever I walk out that door, she knows that I might be in danger. I think, if she just doesn't know when I'm out, she'll have to deal with that worry, and let it go."
"And you think by not being home ever, she'll be less worried?" Dinah asked neutrally.
Morgan barked out a quick laugh, knowing it didn't sound very logical.
"I was hoping it would become more like a background thing and less like a constant rollercoaster."
"I think it's a good idea," Dinah commented.
Morgan blinked in surprise – had she maybe expected Dinah to talk her out of it?
The older woman quirked an eyebrow and a lopsided smile, reading the surprise on Morgan's face.
"Moving out and into your own space is something most young people need to go through at some point. It builds and strengthens identity."
She felt like Dinah had perfectly summed up what she'd been trying to express. This was about identity – this was about carving out her own little spot in this world, from which she could operate.
"I told my mom about it yesterday. I've been looking at ads. I might have something," she started talking more animatedly about it, the prospect exciting her. "It's a pretty small place, but I can afford it on the money I inherited from my dad's life-insurance."
The one thing her dad had done right by her – left behind a substantial life-insurance. She'd be able to live in the apartment while she finished her studies. The money would be tight, but it was doable. And she could work odd-jobs on her breaks, to help save up.
"How did she react?"
"She was shocked?" Morgan tried to guess at her mom's reaction, but it had been very subdued, and she wasn't really sure what to read from that. "Uhm, I think she needs time to process it. I'm sure she's sad, but I know it'll be good for her. And I think she knows that, too."
"It sounds exciting." Dinah took the pen Morgan had been fiddling with and put it aside. "Now, you've been through a lot since our last session," Morgan snorted at the understatement of the century, and Dinah pointedly ignored it. "Tell me about your nightmares."
She grimaced on instinct. She would really prefer not to.
"I'm not sure what to tell you. My dreams are the same they've been for months. Uh, sorta." Dinah perked up at her admission. Morgan tried to figure out how to explain what she'd been seeing in her dreams. "There've been a few times where it's like the signal is crossing with another channel and new images - flashes really - appear in the dream. I saw myself on the rooftop of a building in Gotham. I saw someone underwater."
"Anything that makes sense?"
"Not really. They just pop up as I'm running past. I barely see them."
"Are you still losing sleep over the nightmares?"
Morgan bit into her bottom lip. She was aware that she looked tired. She felt tired.
"Yeah.. yeah, I am."
She thought about the past week since she'd woken up from her coma. Her telekinesis was finally back, but it had taken a while to recharge. She had allowed herself to rest as much as she needed, but it was difficult when she woke every few hours from nightmares. She was so sick of it. By now, they'd all accepted that the spell was a necessary evil – that it was imperative to seal the rifts. But she wished the side effects were something they would do something about. She didn't mind if it took magic – just one or two nights in a row with restful sleep would revolutionize her week.
"Have they gotten worse since your coma?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe?"
"How is working with Nightwing?"
Morgan's head shot up at the sudden change of topic, and she found Dinah watching her shrewdly.
"It's fine. It's – normal," she assured. "We both want to be able to work together. We've agreed that we're okay for now."
"Okay?" Dinah parroted. She leaned forward, resting her chin on her intertwined hands.
Morgan's eyebrows knit together. "Yeees?"
Dinah sat back in her chair and smiled innocently. "Sounds good."
"It's fine." Morgan ground out, not sure what the other hero was getting at. She could tell from Dinah's smile that she had thoughts she was keeping to herself. Morgan hated that look. She felt like all of her thoughts and feelings, even the ones she wasn't aware of herself, were an open book on display for Dinah's perusing.
"It sounds like you're making some good progress. You're making healthy decisions." Dinah encouraged. "I'll look forward to hearing more about you moving into a new apartment soon."
"Uh.. thanks." This session was confusing. Weren't they supposed to be talking about her traumas or something? Or the fact that she'd nearly died?
"And with that," Dinah blew out a breath and looked at her watch. "Our hour is up."
Unlike usual, Morgan sat in her chair for a moment, feeling confused. This hadn't at all been like she'd expected. Usually, Dinah got her to talk about her feelings. Today, it had felt more like an interrogation. Haltingly, she got out of her chair and greeted Dinah goodbye.
"I'll see you next month!" Dinah cheerily called after her as Morgan walked out.
If nothing else, at least she felt a bit more confident now in her decision to move.
June 25th
Wayne Enterprises
Dick
Another board meeting, another mind-numbingly boring day. Was it spelled board meeting or bored meeting? At this point, he wasn't sure.
He stifled a yawn, courtesy of his late night the previous day. Blüdhaven wasn't as bad as Gotham, but the city was still troubled. He had to keep his eye out for any organized crime that tried to rear its ugly head. It required constant vigilance to stamp out any small fires, before they turned into a blaze.
He should probably talk to Bruce about this new job somehow being worse than the previous. He couldn't explain what it was. He felt restless. At this point, he felt that working as a cashier at the local supermarket would've felt more meaningful. At least then he'd know he was directly influencing people's day. He'd make a difference, even if it was just helping an old man reach something from the top shelf, or help a frazzled young mom find the formula she needed to feed her child.
He looked up as the head of department dismissed them. The meeting was mercifully short today. With that, he was off. Dick practically skipped out of the building; happy another day was over. He tried to ignore that it was only Monday.
Beneath the cuff of his nice shirt, his watch started beeping – the watch in which he had a chip containing his holographic computer when he was out of costume.
Dick subtly looked around him before slipping out of view to the side of the building behind a large garbage container. It smelled like something had died in there, but he ignored it as he pressed a button on his watch. The holoscreen popped up, and he looked at the alert that had gone off. The rift-tracker had detected the appearance of a new one, and judging by the readings he was receiving, it was large. A mix of excitement and apprehension pooled into this stomach, his day had just gotten more exciting - and more complicated.
It was in Gotham, he realized. He was actually pretty close by. He thought about checking it out, but he resisted the urge - it would be a waste of time. Time they might not have.
He had to assemble a squad before they went to check it out, and so he headed for the nearest zeta tube that would lead him to the Watchtower. He hastily slipped out of his suit and discarded it in a pile in the hidden zeta-room. He sent out alerts to the squad he had in mind, his thoughts whirring with strategies. This time, they had no idea what was awaiting them - at least, he hadn't been told of any premonitions from Morgan.
He hoped it would be as simple as closing the rift without having to travel through it. Although, if the rift was as large as his readings indicated, there was no way they could avoid a trip.
As he stepped through the zeta tube, all thoughts of his boring, unfulfilling work were gone. It was time to go save the world.
June 25th
Watchtower
Sparrow
Sparrow was busy shoveling pasta into her mouth, aware that Nightwing could show up at any moment and say they had to go. Barbara and Karen were looking at her vigor funnily, but she ignored them, unwilling to risk going on a long mission on an empty stomach. Their rendezvous time was in ten minutes so she knew she had time; however, she wouldn't put it past him to hurry them along once everyone arrived.
A new portal had been revealed. Zatanna was tracking down a necromancer in Peru, so she couldn't make it. Before leaving, she'd given each of them a coin, and the instructions on how to use them to close the rift. Instead, Dick had asked Bart and Jaime to join them. Bart because he had been part of the timeline investigation from the start, and Jaime because Bart never went anywhere without him.
"Has it at least been exciting?" Barbara asked, sipping on the last few drops of her iced coffee. "The missions?"
"You were complaining about wanting more responsibility," Karen added.
Morgan pulled a grimace and swallowed her food.
"By more responsibility, I don't think I meant being directly responsible for the fate of the world.."
The two girls gave her sympathetic looks.
"I don't really think that's something anyone wants," Barbara said, readjusting her glasses. She rolled her wheelchair a few paces over and threw her empty cup into the trash can. Morgan looked at her friend, feeling a stab to her heart. Barbara was dealing well with becoming wheelchair-bound, but Morgan had heard the story of how it happened, and she knew the other woman had been through hell.
Just another reason to be happy that Joker was dead.
"I wish I could come along," Karen sighed. "Traveling between dimensions sounds cool." Morgan gave her an incredulous look, and she quickly added, "Even if the reason is pretty serious! I'm a scientist, girl, I can't help it."
"Me too," Barbara agreed. "I know I can't fight exactly like I used to, but what you're doing just sounds cool."
"You guys should ask Nightwing," Morgan said, refocusing on her food. "He's in charge of the teams. I'm sure he'd let you join."
"How is that going, by the way?" Barbara asked carefully, "can the two of you work together?"
Morgan hoped it wasn't obvious that she visibly perked up at the question.
"Actually, things are good! We've agreed that we're okay. Working together hasn't been an issue."
Karen pointed behind her and said, "Speak of the devil."
Morgan shifted in her seat to look.
Her heart dropped into her stomach. There was Dick, wearing a big smile. Beside him walked Koriand'r, looking, as usual, completely gorgeous. She flashed him the most flawless smile Morgan had ever seen and tugged some of her blazing red hair behind her ear. He said something, and she nodded eagerly.
Morgan tried to identify the lump of ice that had manifested in her stomach. Why did she even care? Dick could talk to any woman he wanted. And Koriand'r was really nice. And strong. And gorgeous.
The pair approached their table, and Morgan found her eyes honing in on the pasta on her plate, unwilling, or perhaps unable, to watch them walk together, looking so happy.
What was wrong with her?
"Sparrow," Nightwing called to her, and despite her careful focus on her food, she was unable to not look up at him at his beckoning. He looked her over with care and smiled softly. "It's good to see you on your feet again."
"Thanks," she said, aiming for a breezy tone that somehow came out as breathless instead. Her tongue felt dry in her mouth from the way Starfire stood so close to Dick. Morgan understood that the alien had a crush on her ex, but did she have to make it that obvious? It was torturous for her to witness, even though she told herself she was over him by now. "I followed your advice and let myself rest."
He nodded, satisfied. "Kid flash and Blue are already at the zeta tube. I invited Kori to join, so looks like we'll be five."
Her heart plummeted again. She was Kori now?
Barbara and Karan exchanged a look between them that Morgan adamantly ignored.
"Great.." Sparrow said without much enthusiasm, mustering a tight smile. "Welcome to the team."
Starfire smiled brilliantly. "I'm looking forward to fighting alongside you, Sparrow."
"Let's go then." Morgan quickly got out of her seat, used her telekinesis to throw the rest of her pasta into the trashcan two tables over, and marched out of the room without looking back.
Dick blinked at her retreating back.
"What's up with her?" he asked the two women she'd been sitting with when he'd arrived.
Karen and Barbara sent each other a series of facial expressions that made it look like they were communicating telepathically. He subtly looked across the canteen, but M'gann was nowhere to be found.
"Nothing," Karen said neutrally, taking a long sip from her water to avoid any further questions.
"Nothing you need to worry about," Barbara assured him, though her tone of voice indicated the opposite. Her eyes were dancing with mirth, like she was referencing some inside joke that he wasn't meant to understand. He got the distinct feeling he was being laughed at and not with.
Dick frowned. Had he done something wrong? Was this about him being at her mom's apartment when she came home? He had wondered afterwards if it had been a bad call. He wouldn't blame her, if she felt it was a violation of her privacy, or if he had crossed a line. Maybe he should talk to her about it. It was important that there wasn't any tension between the members of his squads, otherwise the mission would suffer.
She hadn't seemed to mind, though. After all, she'd returned the hug he'd impulsively given her. Was it because he'd protested her going to work?
He grew contemplative as he walked down the corridor, heading for the mission room. Koriand'r walked beside him and didn't talk, perhaps sensing his thoughtful mood.
Eventually, all five heroes were gathered. Together, they stepped onto the platform, where he punched in the correct location.
In a flash, they were gone.
June 25th
Gotham
Sparrow
Her boots crunched against the dirt and small rocks littered about the roof they'd landed on. Areas of it were covered in moss from lack of upkeep. That wasn't noteworthy in Gotham, though. What was noteworthy was the milky fog covering half of the rooftop. It was huge, easily twice the size as the others they'd seen. It rose up much taller than Morgan, and was double the length of her wingspan. In the middle, the fog was swirling in many colors, looking like a galaxy.
"Ay dios mío," Blue Beetle said at what he saw before him. "It's looking big."
Kid Flash frowned and approached the fog carefully.
Sparrow bit into her bottom lip.
"It looks like they're gaining in size." She turned towards Nightwing for a confirmation.
"My readings did hint at it being big," he admitted. "I just hadn't expected.. this."
Despite the large size, the timelines didn't seem to be merging. There was nothing glitching in and out. Sparrow felt frustration grow and she held back a groan. If the rifts would at least behave the same, they would know what to expect. But every single one of them seemed to act according to their own internal logic. Why?
"It is not a problem, is it?" Starfire asked from Sparrow's left.
Nightwing approached the fog and shook his head.
"Other than the fact that we're going to have to travel through to close it.. And last time, that wasn't exactly without complications.."
Morgan brushed off the look he aimed at her over his shoulder, and stepped forward, entering the outskirts of the fog.
"You don't have to worry about me," she told him, lowering her voice. She knew it was futile – the others could still hear her. "My telekinesis is back and I'm fit as a fiddle."
He frowned. "Your telekinesis was gone?"
Crap. She hadn't meant to tell him that. He already thought it was unreliable, no need to add fuel to that particular fire.
She decided to ignore him. Dick was totally the type to let things go, right?
"Let's activate the spell and see what happens. We know how to use the coin-seals now, so it shouldn't take long."
Zatanna had explained it to her. The coins were enchanted with a magic seal – once one of them was placed on one side of an entrance, and the other was on the other side, they closed that entrance for good. They worked for anything that could be considered a doorway of sorts, and apparently the rifts counted.
"Then why are we here?" Kid Flash questioned.
Nightwing calmly took out one of his escrima sticks from its holster.
"Because when we travel to the other timeline, we could end up in a literal warzone."
"And we might need a meat shield, in case that happens" Morgan teased, smirking at her friends. Starfire frowned, as if unsure whether she was joking or not.
Kid Flash and Blue Beetle snickered, but Bart cracked his knuckles and Jaime produced a plasma gun to show they were ready for anything.
With little fanfare, Nightwing grabbed Sparrow's arm, and she felt that familiar tingle spread across her skin. Goosebumps raised beneath her suit, as if the spell was releasing a tiny surge of electricity along her body. She looked up at him for all of two seconds, briefly basking in the closeness, before she remembered they had company. Specifically, company that loved to tease her.
"Time to go." She cleared her throat and looked at their three teammates, who stood just outside of the fog. It had started reacting to the spell being active, writhing and pulsing. They looked at it with amazement, and then at their two teammates who stood casually in the midst of it. Starfire, Kid Flash and Blue Beetle weren't as confident, having never dealt with the phenomenon before. Sparrow wondered when walking into a magical mist that transported her across realities had become something she was 'used to'.
"Get into the fog, otherwise we'll just leave you behind," she encouraged them to get closer. Kid Flash zipped up next to her in a millisecond, and the two others followed in a more normal tempo.
"Ready?" Nightwing asked, holding out his hand for her to grab. He turned towards the rest of the squad, huddled around the two of them. "You might feel a loss of balance for a moment. Don't worry if it starts to feel like the ground is disappearing beneath your feet. We need to be alert as soon as we reach the other side, so try to keep a clear head. And remember, once we're there, our communicators won't work. We need to stick close together."
Before he could continue his string of advice, Sparrow grabbed onto his wrist, and the fog immediately thickened, swallowing all of them.
It seemed that the rift wasn't just bigger, but also more powerful – instead of a slow build up, the ground disappeared beneath their feet instantly, and Morgan had the distinct feeling of being sucked down and away, like someone had flushed her down a giant toilet.
It lasted only for a second, and then she was standing in the same spot as before. She almost stumbled, their travel having been a lot more violent than last time. She was saved from the humiliation by the hand holding onto her arm.
Something felt off. Their travel had been different. The pull had been stronger. The whole thing happened so fast, her eyes hadn't even turned golden.
The Squad of five looked around them. The sun had been setting, painting the sky in a golden hue when they'd traveled, but it was now late at night. Below, they could hear the usual noise of Gotham – cars honking, police sirens, pedestrians talking loudly.
Even worse than the late hour, the mist was gone without a trace.
"Where did it go?" she asked, taking a step back and letting go of Nightwing's wrist.
"It was gone the first time we traveled too," Nightwing reminded her, sounding as calm and collected as always. "Let's try to reactivate it and see if it comes back."
She let him grab her arm as her hand found his wrist. They stood holding their breaths for an extended moment.
Nothing.
"Huh," Nightwing said, and Sparrow aimed an unimpressed look at him.
"Now what?" she let go again and looked around them, approaching the edge of the roof to look below.
"I thought you guys had done this before?" Bart groaned.
Morgan glared at him. "This particular thing hasn't happened before."
Starfire looked worried. "If we cannot find another fog, we cannot go home."
"I'm so not getting stuck in my old timeline. No thanks," Bart said.
"Ditto," Blue agreed. "Not looking to be enslaved by the Reach again."
"We'll be fine, we just need to find the fog again. Right, Nightwing?" Sparrow looked to their leader
"The other me gave me a chip so I could access this timeline's batcomputer." Nightwing looked at his holo with a frown. "But I'm not getting a connection."
Sparrow pursed her lips and stared at him.
"I feel like this keeps happening."
He pressed a few buttons. "I just need to upload the tracking program to another computer. It's gonna be fine."
"Where are we getting another computer?" Kid Flash asked.
"There." Nightwing turned on his heel and pointed at the giant skyscraper behind him.
Sparrow followed his pointer finger, looking at the big, fluorescent 'Wayne Enterprises' logo lighting up the night sky.
"You sure?" she asked, not sure if going there would somehow expose his secret identity.
"Yeah," he shrugged with feigned casualty. "They have some of the most advanced computers in Gotham."
He slipped the escrima stick back into its holster and took out his grapple gun.
"Let's go."
Off he went.
Starfire immediately flew after him, and Blue unfurled his wings.
Sparrow looked at Kid Flash. "Do you want a lift, or are you fine following from below?"
He smirked at her and didn't respond – he was gone in a flash, and Morgan found she was alone on the rooftop. She quickly ran to jump off the roof and spread her wings, picking up speed to catch up to the others. They'd gone out of view already, but she knew they were just hidden behind the tall skyscrapers she was weaving through on her way towards the Wayne building. If nothing else, she'd meet up with them at their destination. She was sure Dick would be annoyed that she'd fallen behind, but hey.
She tried to not worry – yes, the mist was gone, and the mission had turned more complicated than they'd expected, but still not as complicated as they'd feared. At least there was no horde of Reach on their tail this time. Gotham looked relatively untouched, the same dark and grimy city as always.
"Sparrow!" someone below called out for her, and she halted her flight to look down.
"Nightwing?" she wondered. Why was he not on his way towards the Wayne building? And where were the others?
She landed in a soft crouch on the rooftop from which he'd been waving at her. She barely got out of her crouch before he had pulled her to him in a tight hug. She stood frozen in his embrace, confused more than anything else.
"I thought you said you wouldn't be here before midnight?" he questioned, holding her face tenderly in his gloved hands.
"Wha-?"
"I'm glad you're here early." He smiled freely at her, the sort of relaxed and open smile Morgan hadn't seen on his face for several months. Least of all directed at her. "Gives me time to do this."
Morgan froze and her heart started doing all kinds of somersaults when he fitted a hand around her waist, pulled her flush against him, and placed his lips on hers.
Her brain short-circuited, several wires frying the second his mouth found hers. It took her all of three seconds to break through her shock, and then she squirmed out of his grasp. Placing both hands against his chest, she roughly shoved him away.
Her heart was dancing a jig in her ribcage, but she stared at him in shocked fury. Her hand took on a mind of its own, and she slapped him across the face, the sound of it ringing through the tense air. He reeled to the side and from the way his mouth dropped into a gape, his hand clutching his hurt cheek, she could tell she'd well and truly surprised him.
"What the fuck are you doing!"
He looked at her with open confusion. "What am I doing? You slapped me!"
"Sparrow?" someone said behind her, and the familiarity of the voice instantly made her realize what was going on.
She turned on her heel and saw her Nightwing taking in the sight before him. Oh fuck no, had he seen? Please, please tell her he hadn't seen what had just transpired.
"Oh, thank god," she sighed and took several steps away from the other Nightwing. "I thought I was losing my mind for a second there."
Behind Nightwing, the rest of their squad appeared. Kid Flash was drinking in the scene like his favorite show was running. Great. They had seen.
The other Nightwing grabbed his escrima sticks and sunk into a fighting stance.
"What's going on here? Who are you?"
"Relax, I'm you," Nightwing said with a flat voice. He didn't seem too wild about them running into alternative him. Because he had kissed her? Or because Dick seemed to have an existential freak-out every time they did?
He took a step forward and placed himself beside Morgan and then an inch in front of her, subtly shifting on his feet to shield her from view. From the tense, angry line of his back, she knew he had seen the kiss, and her reaction.
Morgan could tell she was blushing crimson, but at least now her heart had calmed somewhat. This was just mortifying. Randomly bumping into the other Dick was one thing – seriously, what were the odds? – but him kissing her in front of the team, and her Dick, took the cake. This mission was getting worse and worse by the second.
"Oh, really?" The Other Nightwing asked, with an edge of challenge to his voice. "Prove it. Tell me something only I would know."
Oh, this was easy. Morgan already knew the answer to that one.
She opened her mouth, and with speed that would've impressed even Bart, Nightwing jumped over and covered it with his gloved hand.
"Don't you dare," he growled, and Morgan tried to look innocent behind his gloved hand. The other him was watching them like a hawk, his back tense and straight.
Dick walked towards the other Nightwing, holding his hands up to show he meant no harm, and whispered something in his ear, too low for Sparrow to hear.
This was.. bizarre. The first time they met the other Dick, he'd been older and wearing a Batman costume. It had been easy to distinguish between the two of them. Now, as they wore the same dark suit with blue chest, hair weirdly identical, it truly looked like Dick had stepped into a cloning machine and walked back out with a perfect twin. Even the way they moved was the same. That assured and strong sense of self that bled into his body language, punctuated by a natural grace and fluidity that Morgan had always been envious of.
The other him chewed on whatever it was Dick had whispered but appeared to accept it.
"Fine," he said. He finally looked past the pair before him and focused on the rest of their colorful group. The lines of his body got taut instantly and held up his escrima sticks, preparing for battle.
"Beetle," he seethed, the ends of his weapons crackling with electricity, as if feeding from his anger.
He looked like a crouching panther about to strike, and Nightwing and Sparrow exchanged a split-second look before jumping forward.
"Wait-wait-wait," she placed a hand on his arm and squeezed it, as Dick blocked his path to Jaime. "He's with us!"
"He betrayed us!" The other Nightwing growled behind barred teeth, the whites of his mask two small, furious slits. The hatred oozing from him made him look like a wild animal, and Morgan was starkly reminded that this Nightwing was in open war and had probably lost friends already.
"Maybe yours did!" Nightwing braced his hands against the other's shoulders. "But ours broke free!"
"Blue is fighting for Earth," Kid Flash zipped up next to them, the first of the other three to react. "You can trust him!"
"I'm good!" Blue Beetle allowed the helmet of his suit to fall back, revealing his face. "I'm me, I swear!"
"What the hell is going on here?" A new voice cut across the chaos. Sparrow and the two Nightwings all exchanged looks before turning and facing the newly appeared second Sparrow.
Oh well. This might as well happen, Morgan thought as she looked at her own face staring back at her. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she remembered the other Dick had mentioned he was supposed to be meeting up with her here.
"Hi, me." She waved a hand at herself, trying to appear calm. As she beheld herself, wearing an identical suit to the one she had on, hair in her signature braid, she started to understand why Dick had been so freaked out about meeting himself.
The other Sparrow raised a slow eyebrow. "Hi, uh, me back?"
"They're from another dimension," her Nightwing explained flatly, placing his escrima sticks back in their holsters. He'd stopped trying to throttle Blue when she had arrived, and now he took a step towards her. He held out a hand and she grabbed it, sidling up next to him with ease.
"Well, that's different," she said curiously. She studied Morgan intensely, and Morgan shuffled her feet and puffed out her cheeks at the scrutiny.
The other Nightwing appeared to have settled a bit at her appearance, now that he wasn't alone with a bunch of sort-of-strangers and his own twin.
"Tell me what you're doing here." He looked them all over, one by one. His eyes reached Sparrow last, and he looked uncomfortable. Heck, so was she. She wondered how his Morgan would react to being told he'd kissed the wrong one.
"We're trying to get home and seal the portal we traveled through," Sparrow explained. "Only, we need the right equipment to track it."
"And what does that entail?"
Nightwing pulled up his holo and showed the other him, who appeared remarkably chill about their sudden appearance.
"I have the tracker, but no connection. We were going to, uh, lend a computer from Wayne Enterprises."
The two Nightwings exchanged an identical look.
"Yeah, that would've been my move too," The other Dick sighed. They immediately started strategizing. The other Nightwing seemed eager to get them out of his timeline. The rest of the team crowded around the two of them, weighing in on their situation. Sparrow let them, standing back to instead study her counterpart.
The other Morgan approached her, and she tried for a casual smile. By the unimpressed look she received, she knew it wasn't successful – why had she even thought she could fool herself?
This was bizarre.
"This is bizarre."
Morgan let out a small laugh.
"My thoughts exactly."
They shared a private smirk.
She wasn't sure why Dick had reacted with an existential freak-out at meeting himself. This was nice?
"So, is your Nightwing as anal as mine?" the other Morgan asked, and the question made Morgan splutter out a laugh. The other Morgan joined.
The two Dick's, as well as the rest of the team looked at the two girls laughing together.
"We're trying to come up with a strategy here, so we don't get stuck in the wrong timeline?" Nightwing bitched. "Can you stay focused?"
Sparrow bit down to hide her smile, and looked at the other her, who was hiding her grin behind her hand.
"One hundred percent," she said, to answer her earlier question. She turned towards Nightwing again, and saw he was still staring at her with a stiff face. "What's the issue, I thought we were just going to break into the Wayne building and use their computers, and then be on our merry way?"
Nightwing visibly rolled his eyes. "If you'd been paying attention, you'd know Nightwing here just told me the Wayne building was seized by Reach last week. It's heavily guarded."
"God, you get so uptight every time you meet yourself," Sparrow shot back. She didn't appreciate getting lectured like a toddler. He wouldn't listen to whatever suggestions she had anyway, so why should she get involved with strategizing?
The clenching of his jaw told her she'd run her mouth.
"You've met other you's?" The Other Nightwing asked.
Dick leveled a stiff glare in her direction, and she knew he wasn't going to answer the other him's question. He was daring her to open her mouth. Morgan crossed her arms across her chest and met his glare with an unimpressed look. Why was he so on edge?
"Let's focus on the task at hand," he bit out.
Morgan shrugged and dropped her gaze, approaching the group. The other her followed behind.
"Wow, your Nightwing is even worse than mine," she whispered, and Morgan held in a smile.
"So, what's our strategy?" she asked with a sigh.
"Risking an open fight would be a huge pain in our ass." The other Nightwing said. "They're not afraid to take prisoners and they retaliate with vengeance."
"Yeah, it would be a lot less of a headache for us, if you guys just snuck inside."
"Fortunately, subtly is definitely our strongest suit," Sparrow said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She looked pointedly at the alien woman beside her, whose hair was glowing like a molten river of lava down her back, and whose eyes were like two blazing, green suns.
"We'll enter through the garage. There's an old elevator, barely used. It goes all the way to the top floor," Nightwing said. Morgan understood it for what it was – Batman's secret, personal elevator.
"As long as the Reach hasn't discovered the elevator, you should be able to pass unnoticed."
"Cool. Let's go," Sparrow walked across the roof, ready for this little meeting to be over. It was embarrassing that Dick saw fit to lecture her like he was still her mentor, in front of the entire squad. She knew she was going to call him out on it when they got back home in a more private setting. If these timeline missions were going to be a longer project, he had to back off. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to keep working together.
She didn't understand. Hadn't they agreed that they were okay? This didn't feel like the same Dick that had hugged her tight and promised her they were good.
"We head for the street and keep out of sight," Nightwing said, power-walking ahead of her. He fired his grappling hook into the building across from the one they'd been on, gliding in an arc towards the ground. He scaled down the wall in a matter of seconds and fastened the grappling hook to his side.
"Good luck," the Other Nightwing told her.
Morgan looked at the two of them, as they stood and watched their little squad move. It occurred to her that the other Morgan might already be pregnant and not realize it, and was at most a few years away from dying. At the thought, she felt her stomach bottom out and land in her feet. Looking back at her own face, staring at her with innocence, she felt overcome with guilt. The future of the other Morgan was grim, and her life would result in nothing but pain and death. And here she was, fighting to avoid the same end, trying to cheat fate, trying to circumvent the way she was always meant to end up.
She looked at the Other Nightwing next and thought about the future him she'd met over a month ago. How he'd carried a sadness over him that seemed to weigh him down like a heavy blanket. Something about him had been resigned, numb. This Dick was still fighting to win. He hadn't given up – he hadn't been well and truly broken yet.
She wet her lips, her mouth dry and her tongue thick, and she was a second away from telling them everything she knew.
The Other Sparrow held up a hand, as if reading the conflicting emotions on her face.
"Don't tell us anything we're not supposed to know."
"We know our future's looking pretty bleak right now," The Other Nightwing admitted. "But knowing about it probably won't change anything."
The Other Morgan nodded and grasped his hand, looking up at him with a fond smile.
"Whatever happens, it's fate. We're ready for it."
Morgan was unable to keep in a grimace at her words. Whatever they were thinking, she felt that it wasn't as bad as the reality she knew was heading their way.
"Okay," she said, the word thick in her throat. "Good luck."
"Oh, and sorry about, uh, kissing you," the Other Nightwing quickly said. "I didn't realize you weren't.. you."
His Morgan was gaping at him, and then she started laughing openly. "So that's why you look like you've been slapped! I was wondering about the handprint!"
Morgan smiled. "It's fine."
She turned and jumped off the roof before she lost her nerve and ended up telling them everything she was keeping in about their fate. Her heart felt like it had been replaced by a lump of ice.
The rest of the squad waited for her, and she fought down a blush at once again having fallen behind.
"Everyone here?" Nightwing asked, and she couldn't help but take it as a subtle dig at her.
She rolled her eyes.
"Yes. Let's just go." She folded her wings behind her back and started walking in the direction of the Wayne building.
"We're taking the sewer route," Nightwing called after her.
She turned on her heel and walked back towards their little group, who all observed her. Then, she passed by them and headed for the manhole cover in the middle of the road. She tried not to clench her fists in anger, feeling wretched. Almost nine months of being a member of the Justice League, trying to build her confidence. In one single mission, he'd made her feel like she was still on her first month of being a hero. She felt off balance and unsure. Perhaps it was because she'd just been kissed by another Nightwing, and the whole thing had shaken her. It had felt like him, but something inside of her had told her it was deeply wrong. It was like her soul had known it wasn't him. Perhaps her insecurity was strengthened by the way Starfire seemed to gravitate close to Dick's side, and that he didn't seem to mind it. Perhaps it was because she didn't want to look like a fool in front of the other woman, and she was failing at that.
She was over him. She swore she was. They had agreed that they were good, and she stuck to that. Maybe not quite friends yet, but something close to it.
She just wasn't ready to see him move on already. It was still too – raw. She was sure that watching him fall in love with someone else would undo her, even though she knew it was inevitable.
Just.. Not yet. Maybe in a year, she'd be ready. Or two. Maybe never.
Lost in thought as she was, she didn't remove the manhole cover. Kid Flash nudged Blue, who stepped forward and used a magnetic canon to move it, and the two of them jumped down. Starfire walked by and gave Morgan a big smile before entering the sewer. She seemed to just be happy to be included. Morgan tried to tamper down the ill will she struggled to not develop towards the other woman. She refused to be the jealous ex. Koriand'r had done nothing wrong. She couldn't help her feelings any more than Morgan could. Starfire had been nothing but kind to her.
Sparrow squeezed the best she could, but her large wings still got squished on her way down. Thankfully, she didn't get stuck this time. She thanked her lucky stars that her wings had stopped growing months ago – she couldn't imagine them getting any bigger. They were already big enough now to be a liability anytime she had to maneuver tight spaces.
Nightwing got down after her, lithely landing in a soundless crouch. He got up and started leading the way.
He was doing that thing again. The brooding leader schtick.
Her heart clenched. Everything felt wrong.
Focus on the mission, Morgan, she thought to herself, steeling her will. She looked ahead into the dimly lit sewer.
Darkness lay ahead.
?
Wayne Enterprise
Nightwing
His fingers were tapping furiously away at the keyboard, the keys clicking loudly in the silent room.
Their trip to Bruce's office had been mercifully uncomplicated. The building wasn't as heavily guarded as the other Nightwing had made it sound. Outside of a few close calls, they'd managed to avoid any Reach in the building.
Now all they needed was for him to break into the computer and use it to find their portal.
He worried. About a lot of things – which wasn't exactly out of character for him, of course.
He worried that the tracker would find no portal, and they'd be stuck here indefinitely. He worried that they'd be found out and taken by the Reach. He worried that their presence would be detrimental to the heroes in this universe. He worried that they'd get stuck here for an indefinite amount of time.
He worried about Morgan.
Why had her telekinesis not been working? And why hadn't she mentioned it before they left? Was she able to fight if she needed to? And if she couldn't fight, would he be able to protect her?
His mind started wandering as he waited for the computer to finish downloading the tracking program, and he relived the cursed moment of the other Nightwing swooping down to kiss her. He couldn't accurately describe the depth of his jealousy when it had happened. He'd been consumed by some strangled emotion that was partly protective, jealous and angry. He'd been extremely satisfied when she had pushed him back and given him a good slap.
But then again – from her reaction, she had clearly thought it was him. Did that mean she would react the same way if he tried to kiss her?
His eyes glazed over as he remembered their first ever kiss. He cringed at the memory – he had always regretted that he had kissed her without asking for permission, or at least without leading up to it in a way that would let her decide if she wanted it or not. He didn't see himself as that kind of guy. The kind that forced himself onto someone.
And, obviously, things had worked out in the end – until they hadn't worked out anymore. But he still carried that guilt.
"Is it coming?" Kid Flash asked, breaking Nightwing out of his musings. The younger boy was practically vibrating with impatience. The rest of them were all huddled behind desks, chairs, and cabinets, waiting for his word.
"Almost," he mumbled, watching the download reach ninety-seven percent.
God, he needed to focus. He had to get her out from under his skin. It was just..
On their last mission she'd gotten seriously hurt. And he'd realized he was still in love with her. Perhaps, his worrying wasn't so unnatural.
Unwillingly, his eyes flitted over and watched her stiff form for two seconds before he tore his gaze away and back onto the computer. Something was eating at her. He suspected it was because he'd been snappy with her earlier.
As the download reached ninety-nine percent, he realized he should apologize for that when they got back home.
One hundred percent. He got back to work, all thoughts of apologizing leaving his mind as he focused on the task at hand.
The tracker did a scan and he fell back onto his butt as he got the result.
"Huh," he said.
"What does that mean?" Blue pressed.
"The rift is in this very building."
Sparrow perked up at that. "That's… suspiciously good news."
Dick pulled up the security feed of the whole building, scanning each camera quickly. He found the correct one, the fog appearing on screen. Several Reach soldiers were studying it.
"It's not good news." He squared his jaw, grim resolution settling over him like a blanket. "The Reach found it – we're going to have to fight our way through."
Sparrow looked at him with worry.
"But that could mean huge trouble for the others. They'll think we're them!"
"Well, what do you suggest we do, then?" Nightwing sighed with frustration.
"They can't see you two – but the rest of us?" Kid Flash spoke up. "Starfire and I aren't known heroes in this universe, and Blue-"
"I think you're all forgetting our best option," Blue interrupted Kid Flash, standing up. "I'm a general in the Reach army. If I go down there and tell them to go away, they will."
"Then all we need is for the rest of us to sneak in without being seen!" Sparrow eagerly agreed, looking at Nightwing. "Right?"
He considered their proposed plan, and then nodded. "Let's do it. Head back to the elevator. The mist is close to the ground floor. Less ground for us to cover if we approach it from the garage."
Dick thanked Bruce's hypervigilance for the secret elevator he'd installed directly behind a fake wall at the back of his office. He wasn't sure they could've reached his office without it.
Their squad all gathered around the elevator. It wasn't large, to avoid getting detected, and they'd had to take it in teams of two on their way up. Now, it was the same deal on their way down.
Morgan, with her wings, took up the most space, and once she squeezed in, there was room for only one more person.
Nightwing quickly darted inside after her. He didn't feel comfortable letting her wait in the garage without him – what if her telekinesis didn't work?
She almost flinched when she realized he was the one that had entered after her. He raised an eyebrow at her as he pressed the button for the garage. She seemed to take it for the challenge it was and straightened her back. With what little maneuverability she had, she flicked her braid behind her back and leveled a haughty look at him.
The elevator doors slipped shut and they were alone.
"What?" he asked with feigned innocence. She scoffed at him.
"Next time you decide to treat me like an unruly toddler, do it without an audience," she spit out.
"If I was treating you like an unruly toddler, maybe it's because you were acting like one," he said dismissively, suddenly wishing they weren't standing so close.
She bristled. Her teeth bared in what could've been a smile if her face hadn't been pulled into an angry grimace.
"Dick, I'm serious," she said from behind clenched teeth. "If you can't treat me like an equal squad member on these missions, then I'm done working with you."
"Why didn't you tell me your telekinesis wasn't working?" he immediately shot back.
She opened her mouth in a small 'o'.
"That's what this is about?" her breath burst out in the form of a single, disbelieving laugh. "If it was an issue, I would've mentioned it! I'm not stupid!"
Dick angled himself over her, making sure he could read her face accurately. She pressed her back a little further into the wall. Her crossed arms jutted out enough to touch his stomach, and she quickly let them fall.
She suddenly looked nervous, as he shifted subtly closer.
"If it's not an issue, why are you afraid of talking about it?" his voice was low, and he was surprised at the sudden huskiness of it. When had that happened?
She visibly swallowed. He was making her nervous – good. That made her easier to read.
"Because you always get like this," she challenged back, her jaw clenched tightly. She seemed to understand what he was doing, and pushed herself off the wall, inching closer to use his own tactic against him. Heat flashed through him, and he was afraid to admit it was working.
The thing was, Dick had always enjoyed it when he could get her to submit to him. Not in a controlling way, where he enjoyed bossing her around, but..
She was so strong and stubborn. She never let anyone boss her around. It was something he admired in her, something that made him relax, knowing she was never going to compromise on her rights, on her sense of self, to please anyone. Not even him.
However.. when they'd been together, nothing had made him hot with desire more than when she would relax in his capable hands, when the stubbornness and sarcasm melted away into something soft and pliable. He understood that it was because of the trust she put in him, that she was able to shed all her layers and shields and bare her soul to him. She was like a little hedgehog rolling over to expose her soft belly to him when everyone else got the spikes. It was intoxicating.
And yet, when that spark of defiance ignited in her eyes, and she would take control, it was somehow even better. Dick so rarely got to relax, but the way she could get him to let go, to allow himself to loosen up and submit to her in return, ignited a flame in his belly that was unparalleled.
"You convince yourself that you need to protect me, and then you start treating me like you're still my mentor," Morgan said, voice low. It broke Dick out of the gutter his thoughts had been heading straight into, and he subtly adjusted himself, feeling very tight in his suit.
Had the elevator always felt like a thousand degrees?
"My telekinesis is back, and it's been reliably back for a while," she went on, deciding to reassure him. "I think I overexerted it after the North Pole, because I used it to lift more than I've ever done before. But it's back, and it works without issue."
He pressed his lips together, realizing she shouldn't have had to tell him that for him to trust her. Regret took over from heat in his belly.
"I'm sorry," he sighed, backing down and away from her as far as the tiny elevator allowed. How long was this ride anyway? He knew the Wayne building was tall, but he felt like it had been going forever. It had certainly been faster on their way up.
"You're right. I do trust you," he tried to reassure her, but he realized the words were empty because they weren't true – he hadn't trusted her to take care of herself. He'd been too stuck in his worry to think straight.
She smiled, but it looked strained.
Finally, the elevator stopped with a clunk, and the doors creaked open.
The garage appeared empty, and the two of them slinked along the wall, hiding behind a large four-wheeler as they waited for the rest of the team to arrive.
Morgan sat unmoving beside him, studying her boots. He resisted the urge to hold her hand – that would be inappropriate, right?
But he could tell she was still bothered, and he wished desperately to reassure her. Impulsively, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it.
"I do trust you," he repeated, his voice barely above a whisper to avoid attracting any attention.
She studied his face blankly for a moment, but eventually, she squeezed his hand in return and then dropped it, placing her hand into her lap.
He was unsure if he had managed to reassure her but accepted that he'd done what he could for now. They were still in the middle of a mission - he had to focus.
Eventually, the others came down, and they all snuck towards the stairs. The sound of their footsteps echoed up the empty staircase, but Nightwing could hear that they were alone in there so he didn't worry.
"This is it," he whispered in front of a door leading to the second floor. "Blue enters first and orders everyone out of there."
Blue summoned a canon in preparation, should a fight break out.
Nightwing looked him over. "We'll wait for your signal."
Jaime entered the room, and the others could hear a conversation being carried in the Reach's language. There was silence for a moment, and then Jaime came knocking on the door again.
"Let's go, hermanos. I bought us a few minutes at most."
"What did you tell them?" Kid Flash asked as their group entered the room, heading straight for the mist. It spanned across most of what had once been an open office space. Now, tables and chairs were turned over, lying in messy piles about the room.
"I told them I thought I saw something on the fourth floor, and for them to check it out. Now let's go, pronto."
Starfire had quickly gone to stand in the fog, and Kid Flash joined her, Blue Beetle on his heels. Something seemed to draw Morgan's attention, as she headed towards the windows and looked out, lost in thought for a moment. He could tell she was still bothered, and so he went towards her and put a hand on her shoulder, tugging softly to pry her focus away from the view outside.
"Sparrow?" he said. She turned, shaking her head as if out of a dream, and hurriedly approached the others.
"Ready to go home?" He was unsure if he was asking all of the squad, or just her.
She nodded.
"I am happy we didn't need to be a 'meat shield'" Starfire said innocently.
Morgan grabbed his wrist and Dick felt that familiar surge of energy spread out across his skin. His finger snaked around her bicep, the magic instantly interlocking. The mist started swirling, but it was slower this time than last.
That slowness would prove fatal.
With a loud creak, the door behind them burst open. Reach piled in. A big, hulking figure followed them, and his sinister voice ran like cold water down Nightwing's back. Black Beetle had found them.
"Get the meat!" he growled and pointed his arm towards them as it transformed into a plasma cannon.
Dick knew they were only seconds away from traveling, but it was too late. As the mist enveloped them, and they found themselves stumbling into their own reality, Dick was certain of one thing: the damage had already been done – Black Beetle had seen them. He had no doubt in his mind that the hateful alien would go after the other Nightwing and Sparrow now.
And if this was the catalyst for his pursuit of Sparrow..
Then they had just sealed her fate.
You know I had to include some kind of kissing-mix up. We like to get a little messy.
I feel like the pace of this chapter was like break-neck - but it's also the longest chapter yet so? Because The mission was introduced and then they immediately went. Anyway, I hope it wasn't too jarring of a pace?
This chapter, I tried a thing I haven't done before, where I switched the POV in the middle of a scene, without a scene-break. My Beta assures me it wasn't clunky, so i hope no one minded.
In this chapter, it was important for me to switch between POV a lot, to really show how much the two of them are still really misunderstanding each other's actions and intentions. They've still got some stuff they need to get through before they're in a good place. I think it's important for their character development to be a constant ebb and flow, so it's not perfectly linear. In my opinion, Dick is out of line in this chapter, but that's kinda by design. This sort of shows how he used to act when they were on missions together when he was her mentor, and makes a good point for why Morgan decided to join the League instead. They broke up for a reason, and his lack of trust in her abilities and judgement was part of that, and that's something he doesn't seem to understand yet. So I feel that it's a chapter where a lot happens, plotwise, but also emotionally.
And we also got to meet Alternative-Morgan! I hope you liked their interaction, it was certainly fun to write!
My daughter turns two in two days so lets all collectively say thanks to her, because this story would not exist if she hadn't been a very easy baby, making me bored out of my mind during maternity leave lol.
As always, let me know what you think! Your comments make my day!